DOHA, QATAR, 12 April 2015. - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed that sustainable development is only possible if human rights are respected and the rule of law is applied.
Opening the 13th UN Crime Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Doha, Qatar today, 12 April 2015, Ban noted that if the international community could remake the world in the image of justice and equality, "we will have been part of an extraordinary achievement for billions of people".
Attended by 5,000 delegates from 142 countries, the event is hosted by the Government of Qatar.led by the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Khalifa Al Thani who was present at the inaugural ceremonies.
"Our goal," Ban said, "is for the world to speak and to say with one clear voice, 'today was a better day than yesterday, and tomorrow will be better than today.'"
The 13th Edition of the UN Crime Congress taking place at the Qatari National Conference Centre in Doha from 12 to 19 April marks the 60th year since the inception of the Congress.
Other speakers at the opening included the Prime Minister of Qatar and Minister of the Interior, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser Bin Khalifa Al-Thani; UN General Assembly President Sam Kutesa; Martin Sajdik, President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and Yury Fedotov, Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior of Qatar who was elected President of the Thirteenth Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, said that his country's hosting of the conference comes out of its sense of responsibility about the importance of criminal justice and the establishment of safe national communities, an international society governed by the rule of law and the principles of freedom and liberty.
"Crime affects the ability of millions of people to realize a life of prosperity and dignity," UN General Assembly President Sam Kutesa, said. He called on everyone to exert all efforts to create peaceful, just and prosperous societies by strengthening crime prevention and criminal justice systems, norms and standards, while combating the threats that undermine them, particularly transnational organized crime, illicit trafficking and corruption.
The Congress is the largest and most diverse gathering of policymakers and practitioners in the crime prevention and criminal justice field. It is a global forum for ministers and diplomats, as well individual experts from academia, representatives of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, specialized agencies and other United Nations entities, and the media.
end
For further questions and more information please contact:
Media@turjuman.net (mailto:Media@turjuman.net)
+97450640324
The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.
Source: Organizing committee of the 13th UN CONGRESS ON CRIME PREVENTION via Globenewswire
